TAKE 2

It was difficult for them to grasp the needless eccentric behavior initiated by Rohan in the colony. Was he possessed? It seemed to be so because; the way he acted was obviously abnormal. He spoke in three different languages, those that the people who knew him could vouch weren’t his cup of tea, I mean; he wasn’t apparently a polyglot and could barely speak Hindi decently. They all assumed some ghost had captured his body and was regulating his behavior. On a certain day, Rohan smirked at a lady in the colony and said, “it is hilarious you keep watching that man in the locality. Look at your own husband madam.” The lady got so embarrassed that she hardly stood there for another moment and disappeared like a thunderbolt from that place. Her husband got the news as it immediately spread like wild fire about the possibility of his wife being disloyal towards him and therefore, at once, he went home from office, fired her like anything and asked her to be prepared for a divorce. His wife screamed at him crying hysterically, “You trust that mad man, possessed by a ghost!” the man replied, “Yes, because I know ghosts apparently do not lie.” “how do you know that ghosts do not lie? Have you been with them for years”? Questioned his wife rather agonizingly. He replied, “ Yes. Satisfied. I have been with ghosts for years. I know they do not lie. Now you get out of my house. You cheat! You had been eyeing on that man for may be centuries and I do not even know about it!” The wife went away to her parents’ home crying. Her parents became very upset. She was upset too but what to do? She knew that her husband will never accept her again. The next day, she went to Rohan. “You seem to be a clairvoyant right?” She said looking at him rather suspiciously. Rohan laughed. “I am”. He said looking into the woman’s eyes rather frighteningly. While anyone would have backed off from him getting scared by his horrifying red eyes that evidently were a proof of the ghost in him, this lady looked all the more fiercely into his glaring sanguine looking eyes and said, “ I know one thing about you. I will pronounce it in front of the entire colony and you will be out of here Rohan.” The boy was nonplussed. “What do you know about me”? he inquired rather curiously. She laughed and said, “ I know who you are. You are the ghost of a horrible looking man who used to be rejected by all women in the world and thus committed suicide last year. Now you are possessing men and out of reprisal, are making sure all women rot and therefore, you deliberately try all these tactics.” Rohan looked at her in utter surprise and remarked, “How did you gather that information about me?” The woman said, “Because you made a hell out of my life, do you think I would keep quiet?” Now see, I will disclose this secret of yours in front of the colony. They will bring an exorcist here and throw you out. Rohan said, “Why don’t we make a deal.?” She replied, “What.” Rohan said, “I will take my words back in front of everyone and say that you are innocent. And your husband will accept you once again. I will be able to remain in his body for ages as I want to and I do not harm anybody so no one cares. They will let me stay with him.” Woman said, “ok. Deal.” The next day Rohan spoke publicly, “This woman is innocent. She does not look at any other man but her own husband who she views as a young handsome smart dud! Every morning when he goes to office he looks as young as a handsome youth and she admires him. That’s all I meant when I said, if you look at the man you must look at the husband too!” The woman was acquitted from the blame. Her husband came to her with a sorry face, “I am sorry. Accept me. I won’t disappoint you ever.” She replied, “I would have if I could have.” Husband was confused, “What do you mean? Why can’t you?” Because, now I am possessed by HER. She has refused to comply with the demands of the MAN.” Her husband was curious, he further asked, “Who has possessed you? What are you saying?” The woman laughed and replied, “That ghost’s wife, the she-ghost has possessed me. She is disallowing me from accepting you back. She says, ever since my husband became a flirt and approached many women and they all rejected him because he was unworthy with his gruesome looks and with his married tagline, I took an oath, I will always be against him. He committed suicide as he wasn’t satisfied with our marriage and was tired with rejections from women and I committed suicide after him as I wanted to follow him. So now, I have possessed your wife. I will not let her accept a MAN.” Husband went away disappointed. Rohan was standing there and listening to her. He came there and asked her, “you’re lying right? I know as I did not have any wife. I died unmarried.” She replied, “ I know why you did all this. You like me right? Want to marry me right and wanted my husband to divorce me right?” Rohan smiled, “Ok. So you get there is it? Fine. So let this be a TRUE DRAMA. Let’s get together. What’s say?” She smiled and they became a couple. They stay together in our locality in a flat that’s closed since eons. It is opened when someone wants to do a play. The play gets over and the flat is closed and they stay happily EVER AFTER.

Dr. Payal Trivedi